Neurological impairment in eating disorders has been widely documented. The P300
component of event-related potentials has demonstrated efficacy in identifying
individuals who suffer from mental disorders and cognitive deficits. More recently, a
number of researchers have used P300 event-related potentials (ERPs) to elucidate
the effects of food intake and glucose metabolism on brain function and performance
on cognitive tasks. Minor food deprivation decreases P300 amplitude and increases
P300 latency, indicators of impaired cognitive performance. Short-term memory
disruptions correlate with such ERP decrements. The present study examined the
auditory P300 in females who are at-risk for developing an eating disorder as defined
by a score of 14 or more on the Drive for Thinness subscale of the Eating Disorder
Inventory-:! (EDI-2). Memory performance was also examined. The results failed to
support the hypothesis that at-risk females, compared to normal controls would restrict
their food intake and would therefore exhibit smaller P300 amplitudes, longer P300
latencies, and impaired short-term memory. There was also no statistically significant
difference between the at-risk and normal controls group on a self-report measure of
amount of and time since last food consumption. Interestingly, the at-risk and normal
controls groups also differed significantly on EDI-2 scores for the bulimia, interoceptive
awareness, and asceticism subscales.